In web-processing machines, such as in web-fed rotary printing presses, so-called reel changers are provided and serve to supply material, such as, for example, a web of printing material, to the web-processing machine. During a reel change, the wound off or exhausted reel of material is removed from the reel changer and is replaced by a new reel of material. Various transport systems for use in transporting the new reels of material to the reel changer or for transporting the wound off reels of material away from the reel changer are known from the prior art.
In EP 0 925 246 B1 and in EP 0 925 248A, there is described a complex system for use in transporting reels of material to and from the reel changer of a printing machine. In this prior device, the reels of material are stored, on their circumferential surfaces, on first transport carriages. The actual conveyance of the reels of material is then accomplished by loading the first transport carriages onto second transport carriages. This means, in other words, that the first transport carriages are loaded, piggyback, onto the second transport carriages. In the system described in EP 0 925 246 B1, a total of four different sections of rails or track for the second transport carriages are provided. None of the second transport carriages can move outside of the transport section to which they are assigned. Directly in front of the reel changer there is provided a section for a second transport carriage, which second transport carriage can be moved into an upload position and into an unload position for the reel changer. By loading a first transport carriage, on which a new reel of material is deposited, onto a second transport carriage in this section at the reel changer, the new reel of material can be brought into a position that is necessary for uploading. By loading a wound-off reel of material onto a first transport carriage that has been moved to the unload position, by the use of the second transport carriage, the wound-off reel of material can be transported away.
JP 63-074852 A shows a railless transport carriage with a device for lifting reels of material. This transport carriage removes the reels of material from intermediate storage stations and transports the reels of material to a reel changer.
US 2003/0071162 A1, DE 196 26 866 A1, DE 295 16 155 U1 and the article “Zaun erhöht Sicherheit im Maschinenumfeld”, Betriebstechnik Aktuell, Vogel Verlag GmbH, Würzburg, Vol. 39, No. 12, Dec. 1, 1998), p. 28, XP000792690, ISSN: 1434-8071” all describe security devices for transport and storage systems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,751 A, DE 37 39 222 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,017 and DE 203 07 581 U1 disclose drives for transport systems for paper reels.
DE 41 35 001 A1, U.S. Pat. No. 4,537,368 A1 and JP62-157160 show devices for transporting reels of material from a storage area to a web-processing machine comprising multiple processing stations that are arranged one in front of another.
WO 03/080484 A1 describes a material transport system with a network of tracks and with transport carriages that can be moved on that network of tracks.
DE 39 10 444 A1 discloses a storage area for reels of paper. The paper reels are conveyed, via a reel carriage system, to a centrally arranged unpacking and splice-preparation station. After preparation, the reels of paper are reloaded onto the reel carriage system.